subsidies

Climate Dogma Killed Biden’s “Build Back Better”

by Michael Shellenberger A half trillion dollars to subsidize renewables would have raised energy prices, worsened inflation, and undermined decarbonization. But what do we do now? The centerpiece of President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda is dead. Senator Joe Manchin today announced that he could not support Biden’s “Build Back Better” legislation which consisted of $1.7 trillion in new spending and would have added $158 billion to the national debt over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The largest component of spending, $570 billion, was for renewables, electric cars, and other climate change investments. Progressives, environmentalists, and Democrats are furious with Sen. Manchin, but it was their own climate and renewables dogmatism that doomed the legislation. Democratic Senators could have written legislation that expanded nuclear energy and natural gas, the two main drivers of decarbonization, which are strongly supported by Manchin, and Republicans, but instead investments went overwhelmingly to solar panels, wind turbines, and electric cars. It’s true that there were good things in Build Back Better, and that one of the worst climate provisions, the Clean Energy Performance Program, was already removed. Build Back Better included a tax credit for existing nuclear power plants, funding for advanced nuclear fuels, funding for fusion R&D, and financial support for communities hurt by the transition to renewables. But the money for nuclear would not have made much if any difference to the operating of nuclear plans. Nuclear plants in California, Massachusetts and New York are being shut down, despite already being profitable, for ideological reasons. Legislatures in less anti-nuclear states like Illinois, New Jersey, and Connecticult step in to save their plants when they need to. And higher electricity prices due to natural gas shortages are making nuclear plants in other states even more profitable. Of Build Back Better’s […]

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Energy Poverty Kills

From Center for Industrial Progress by Alex Epstein Last week we looked at the need for a process of producing energy that is cheap, plentiful, and reliable—and we saw that solar and wind cannot produce cheap, reliable energy. How Germany embraced solar and wind and ended up in energy poverty Let’s take a look at this in practice. Germany is considered by some to be the best success story in the world of effective solar and wind use, and you’ll often hear that they get a large percentage of their energy from solar and wind. You can see here on this chart how this claim was made and why it’s not accurate. First of all, this is just a chart of electricity. Solar and wind are only producing electricity and half of Germany’s energy needs also include fuel and heating. So solar and wind never contribute half as much to Germany’s energy needs as this chart would imply. But that’s not the biggest problem. What you notice here is that there’s certain days and times where there are large spikes, but there are also periods where there’s relatively little. What that means is that you can’t rely on solar and wind ever. You always have to have an infrastructure that can produce all of your electricity independent of the solar and wind because you can always go a long period with very little solar and wind. So then why are the solar and wind necessary? Well, you could argue that they’re not and that adding them onto the grid will impose a lot of costs. In Germany, electricity prices have more than doubled since 2000 when solar and wind started receiving massive subsidies and favorable regulations, and their electricity prices are three to four times what we would pay in

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Zero FXE launched: Review and Details

by Andrew Cherney from https://www.cycleworld.com The brand’s sleekest and most fun ebike yet. The lightweight, agile FXE is a new addition to Zero’s 2022 lineup. In a segment full of either high-priced, tech-heavy options or cheap flimsy junk, the FXE is a step in the right direction, especially for commuters not too concerned with range. It’s also a ton of fun. The design adds a minimal, supermoto style onto the existing FX platform for a more modern, updated feel. Steel frame holds the tried-and-true ZF 75-5 air-cooled motor in the FXE, rated at 46 hp. The 7.2kWh battery is not removable. Certain design elements like the front headlight design (an LED) and “beak” got carried over directly from the Huge Design concept bike. The bike’s light weight and short wheelbase make it easy to work turns, with good lean angle and sticky Pirelli tires aiding in your attack. You can drag the kickstand if you’re super aggressive though. The relaxed, commuter-friendly riding position is even more upright than the SR/F’s but it makes for a comfy perch (except at higher speeds). You’ll find the Cypher II operating system on the FXE displayed on a new 5-inch TFT screen, giving various ride modes and bike data. Pair your phone with the app to tailor them and get more detailed info. Stylish cast wheels hold grippy Pirelli Diablo Rosso II tires, which upped our confidence in deeper high-speed turns. The rear Showa monoshock delivers nearly 8 inches of travel for an impressively stable ride. Inverted Showa fork is adjustable. J.Juan brakes offer excellent feel and good stopping power, and ABS can be turned off. 2022 Zero FXE Specifications MSRP: $11,795 Motor: ZF 75-5 air-cooled IPM motor Battery: 7.2kWh (max capacity) lithium-ion integrated battery Charger type: 650W integrated Charge time: 9.7 hours to

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